


Dum Viviumus, vivamus.

by Dhole



Category: Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Abandonment, Betrayal, Conflict, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Faction conflict, Hurt/Comfort, Illnesses, M/M, Trans Character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-12
Updated: 2017-04-28
Packaged: 2018-07-16 00:58:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 17,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7245787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dhole/pseuds/Dhole
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>FIC RETCONNED AND DISCONTINUED AS OF 29/07/2017<br/>PLEASE READ "SEMPER FI" FOR THE UPDATED, NEW SERIES FEATURING THESE CHARACTERS.</p><p>"While we live, let us live."</p><p>When faced with a life changing event, four different legionaries must make some difficult choices.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was late. Most Legionaries were asleep in their bedrolls, braving the bitter Mojave cold. Three men remained awake though, the three highest ranking men of Cottonwood Cove. All three were holded up inside the HQ, discussing important matters that needed to be addressed urgently.

“Did either of you two know of the ranger station right above our camp?” The Centurion asked, addressing the first matter of their meeting.

The other two veteran legionaries nodded in tandem. Severus and Canyon Runner were leaned against the lockers at the back of the room, while the Centurion, Aurelius of Phoenix, sat at the desk delivering the subjects of their late night meeting.

“Then why didn't either you bring it to my attention sooner?! How long have the profligates been spying on us?!”

“Sir, with all do respect... We honestly expected you to be aware of threats around the Cove.”  Severus explained. Rolling his wrist as he spoke.

“...Do you take some kind of pleasure in proving me wrong, Decanus?!” The Centurion snapped, nearly throwing himself from the chair he was sat on.

“Not at all sir. I was just...”

“I am the Centurion! You shall respect me!” Aurelius roared.

“Yes Sir. My apologies, Sir.” Severus mumbled, folding his arms while withholding a huff of frustration. Stubborn, that was one word to describe Aurelius. Dim and stubborn.

“Alright ...next subject on the agenda: What we do about these proglifates.”

* * *

While this meeting went on, a hooded figure slipped into the camp. They took cover in the hills of the cove, remaining undetected by both patrolling scouts and the vicious guard mongrels who accompanied them. The figure watched as the scout and his dog walked behind the HQ's walls, before moving further down the hill. Sliding carefully down the slope, they finally reached what they had been searching for.

A large, rusted pre-war truck. It was lodged into the cliff face, presumably crashed there after the bombs fell. The Legion of the Cove avoided the truck, as they often felt dizziness and oncoming headaches if they spent too long near it.

It was exactly why they were here.

The figure pulled down the hood that covered their features. Courier Six, they called them. Little by little, the courier was picking off small Legion groups. Not enough to catch Caesar's attention, but enough to put the fear of god into splinter groups of Legionaries, who dared to set up camps in their desert

Now though, it was time to send a message to Caesar, by wiping out this wretched camp.

* * *

 

Canyon Runner yawned, slightly louder than he had intended to do. It was enough to make Aurelius stop in mid speech, turning to scowl at the Slave runner. 

“I'm sorry, am I boring you, Runner?” He asked the man sarcastically.

“No ...Just tired. It's late.” Canyon replied, blinking heavily. What time was it? It had to be at least 1am by now.

“You are tired, yet you do so little.” Severus then chirped up. “Who knew standing around could be so draining.”

“How can you chastise me for that?! You only move from the front of your tent to go to sleep!” Canyon snarled back, jabbing a finger into Severus' breastplate. The two Legionaries began to squabble among themselves, while the Centurion rubbed his temples in frustration. This was like dealing with Dead Sea and his brothers.

“Enough!” Aurelius roared loudly.

The split second he finished his screech, the sound of crashing came from the outside. Clattering and banging, splitting the still air of the Cove.  The three Legionaries stood in silence, eyes wide in fright.

“What- What was that?” Canyon Runner finally asked, in a panicked tone.  “I'll- Go look. It probably woke up the whole camp!” He then stated, before sprinting to the door and heading outside.

Aurelius and Severus could only stare after him. Neither man wanting to leave the potential safety of the building. After of a brief moment of heavy, laboured breathing, Aurelius decided he would venture out next. Canyon Runner hadn't come back yet, nor had there been any noise since he left. Both of the Legionaries were at least expecting yelling, gunshots ...Anything to indicate danger.

Yet … There was nothing but eerie silence.

“I'm going out too.” Aurelius said, retrieving his hunting rifle from under the desk. Jamming a bullet in and cocking the barrel, he turned to Severus.  “Are you coming, amicus? ...Severus?”

Horror swept over Aurelius' face, when he saw what was happening to the Decanus before him. Severus was shaking violently, his legs struggling to support his weight. The man retched twice, his hand clamped over his mouth to desperately stop himself from shaming himself. Retching a third time, Severus couldn't keep the contents of his stomach down, vomiting a thick amount of bile and blood onto the floor.

“Oh my god!” Aurelius rushed to Severus, grabbing him around the waist before the Decanus collapsed into the pool of his own vomit. “Speak to me, Severus!” He cried, shaking the other. Severus starred up at him, his once clear, brown eyes now scattered with bloodshot streaks. Severus opened his mouth to speak, but only a choked noise escaped him. His body began to convulse violently, his eyes rolled upwards and then, his body became limp.

Aurelius' eyes widened. Decanus Severus was dead.

* * *

 

The air felt thick now, Aurelius found it harder to breathe every passing second.  Aurelius set down the body of the deceased Decanus, there was no helping him now.  He had to get out.

Aurelius hurtled himself out of the front door, gasping for air as he bundled forward. Seconds later, the man came crashing to the ground. Coughing and groaning, the feeling of nausea overpowered the Centurion. His strength was sapping by the passing second. As the fight to stay conscious began, Aurelius slowly gazed around the camp, trying to catch a glimpse of anyone who could help.

“N-No...” He choked, when the bodies of his legionaries came into his line of sight, including the corpse of Canyon Runner. All of them lay in a similar state; their eyes wide in horror, bloodshot and streaming with tears. Not one of the men had a single wound on their body, from what Aurelius could see.

It was the last thing the Centurion saw, before falling into darkness and then seeing nothing at all.

The courier, satisfied with their work, slipped down the hill and entered the cove. Each Legionary they passed was given a slight nudge with their boot, to ensure they were indeed dead. One scout gave a small, agonized groan, when the courier's pressed their shoe into his ribs. They whipped their powerful hunting rifle from their back where it had been holstered, pressing it into the man's temple.

Even in his delirious state, the scout looked up with pleading brown eyes. He couldn't speak, but it was an obvious plea for mercy.

“Not going to work, you disgusting slaver.” The courier growled. The trigger was pulled and the man's head exploded, flesh and bone splattered the ground around where he lay. “Eurgh...” Six grunted, wiping a bloody, prolapsed eyeball from their duster.  

Continuing their search for survivors, they happened upon the large frame of a Centurion. Given the same treatment as the men before him, he was nudged, prodded with the barrel of the rifle and given a hard kick in the shin. When the seemingly dead man didn't rouse, the courier sneered and spat on him.

“That's one less horror in the world” The courier told themself, as they left the now heavily irritated camp, leaving the devastated legion behind them.

* * *

 

Hours passed.

Still no activity from the camp.

The air was now coated a musky green in colour, thick with nuclear fallout. One lone raven flew into the camp, the bird seemed unphased by the almost unbreathable air. The various corpses were a meal far too tempting to pass up for any hungry animal.  The bird descended slowly to the ground, twitching its head in both directions. Once it was adamant no potential threats were around, it hopped over to the largest body in the camp and began to peck at the man's flesh.

Jab.

Jab.

It was like a nail was being slowly pressed into his flesh. Aurelius slowly began to rouse, the repetitive spikes of pain enough to reawaken him from his unconscious state.  A pair of stark, beady black eyes meet his own.

Jab.

“Argh!” Aurelius cried, waving his arm at the winged pest, which quickly took off into the air. He barred his teeth after it, before slowly and steady sitting upright. The pain from hours ago still had a lingering presence, searing through his skull like a hot poker.  Delirious and groggy, Aurelius managed to only just find his footing. He felt motionless in pain, his joints stiff and heavy.

Not a single thing had changed, from what he could see. The bodies still lay there, their eyes wide as if they were silently screaming for help.

There was nothing could be done for his men. All the Centurion could do now was ensure his own survival. Then, strike back at whoever had done this terrible, terrible crime against the Legion.

He slowly ambled his way out of the Cove. His eyes watered, the hot tears burning the irradiated flesh on his cheeks.

Aurelius made himself believe it was an effect of the Radiation.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Stand by me", but featuring two legion kids.

Camp Nelson saw little action. It was almost like a Legion summer camp now, since the collapse of Folrorn Hope's forces. The NCR scrambled to pump as many men as it could into the camp. That was something the Frumentarii caught notice of, Forlorn Hope was a male dominated camp.

Strange and ironic, most of Nelson thought.

Attila, Nelson's lead scout, sat in a deckchair with his feet resting upon a stack of plastic crates. This was his space, up in the hills of Nelson. Here the scout had everything he needed: Food, entertainment and most importantly ...Solitude.

One of his many collected magazines lay across his lap, as the Not-So-Legally acquired radio hummed quietly from the floor.  The scout tapped his foot along to the beat of Big Iron, as he licked his finger and thumb and turned to the next page of his reading materiel.

“Should probably check the perimeter...”  He thought to himself, after a few minutes of reading passed. Dead Sea would not be forgiving if the camp fell to another heavy assault, all because his scout wanted to kick back for a few hours. He could kiss his sorry ass goodbye then and there.

Rising himself out of his deckchair and flicking off the radio, Attila stretched and cracked his back. Once happy he was limbered up, he equipped his hunting revolver and spear, then took to his useual patrol route.

The air was cool, much to the scout's relief. Sunburn was awful, especially with his skin condition. His dark skin was scarttered with white markings of vitiligo, even his hair was beginning to show signs of whitening. During the day, Attila would have to cover up the vast majority of his body, shielding it from the sun. Which of course...often lead quickly to heatstroke in the awful weather of Nevada. 

Attila strolled down the dip of the Nelson road, towards the 'minefield'. Once managing to avoid every mine laid down, he reached the brim of the hill, starring off towards the direction of the Colorado River.

Using the scope of his hunting revolver, Attila monitored his surroundings.

The NCR at Forlorn Hope showed minimal activity from what the scout could see. Attila was soon happy enough that Nelson would have no skirmishes during the night and headed back towards his home camp. 

Complete darkness was starting to consume the land, soon the Mojave's deadliest predators would come crawling out of their hiding places, looking to prey on anything or anyone who was still outside. Attila quickened his pace, not wanting to be a nightstalker's meal.

“Almost home.” He told himself, his pace becoming far brisker as the fences of Nelson came into view over the hills. “Almost home.” He repeated. “Almost-”

**_THUMP_ **

The noise came sudden and fast from behind, sounding like a large animal had tumbled from the cliffs above before finally collapsing to its death. 

It must have come from the dip in the road. But whereabouts was unknown. 

“The fuck...” Attila muttered, slowly retracing his steps towards the source of the sudden noise. Whatever it was, it sounded heavy. An animal perhaps? A bighorner, pursued by a pack of nightstalkers.

Attila pictured the scene. The half snake, half coyote mutants' paws pounding against the ground in hot pursuit of the tired old goat. Their fangs sink deep into its hide, the lethal poison injecting and sealing the beasts fate. Once a nightstalker bites you, you stood very little chance of survival unless you were carrying vital antidote.

Most Legionaries carried various remedies for tackling venom, for that very reason alone.

Dropping to his belly now, the scout slowly dragged himself further towards the dip in the road. He could hear its laboured breathing now, heavy and hoarse. Attila crept ever closer, the lining of his armour padding scraping against the broken concrete.

It was quiet once more. Attila strained to hear another sound, hoping whatever was down there had finally dropped dead. 

“Ay! What'yra doin?!” A voice suddenly barked from the darkness.

Attila nearly jumped out of his skin, the hairs on his arms prickling upwards. His head spun towards the voice behind him, ready to assault a potential attacker. 

* * *

A familiar but idiotic, goofy smile greeted him, making Attila scowl in embarrassment.

“Caius! You scared me half to death!” The scout hissed, keeping his voice low still. The possible threat was still below and this loud mouth was going to alert it!

“The hell ya' doin' up ere'? Nowt comes up 'ere, Tilla.” Caius stated, flicking the red cap he wore upwards.  

Attila could never understand Caius' obsession with collecting such scruffy headgear. The man had an obsession with tatty baseball caps. The more colourful they were, the more he liked it.

“Caius shhh!” Attila hissed, his hands frantically waving for the younger recruit to get down and shut up. “There's something down there!”

The other recruit stopped smiling, his abnormally large front teeth no longer protruding out of his mouth.

“What kinda somfin?” He asked in a whisper, finally he was being quiet. 

“Well I don't know, do I?!” Attila hissed, throwing his hands in the air. Frustrating, it was a word that summed his Caius perfectly. Frustrating and obnoxious. But despite all this, Attila still considered the younger man a close friend and ally within the camp.

Caius stumbled back, his eyes wide at Attila's sudden, explosive response.

“Sheesh Tilly.” He spoke through gritted teeth. “Take it down a notch ay lad? Ya scared of whatevers down there? Cause if yah' want I'll go check it out! Aint nothin' that can scare me!”

The recruit let out a hearty laugh before taking a running jump down into the dip, before the scout could convince him otherwise.

“Caius!” Attila cried, a hand reaching out as if he could grab the recruit out of thin air.

No response from the crater below.  

The scout paced back and fourth, building up the courage to go down himself and see if Caius was okay.  “Caius! Answer me please!” the scout pleaded, a feeling of gut wrenching nausea pulsing through him. “Caius?!” He pleaded for the younger man to answer. Just to give some indication he was okay. 

“Tilla!” The familiar voice of Caius echoed back. “Get down ere’!”

Breathing a huge sigh of relief, Attila took to going down after Caius. He had to give credit where it was due, Caius was far braver than him in this scenario. 

“Caius, where are you?” Attila called, cupping his hands at his mouth in hopes for his voice to travel further. 

“Ere!” The shrill voice called back from the darkness. “You got to get over here! It’s a fuckin dead guy!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we meet Attila and Caius! A cynical scout and a peppy, 'lad culture' loving recruit. They'll be appearing through the fanfic.
> 
> ( While Attila did appear in "Say I look nice", he didn't get much screentime. boo.)
> 
> Side note: Attila is 19, Caius is 17. Entire team is babies, apperently.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a horrifying discovery and Attila is lumped with yet another go fetch mission.

The knight was placed in the check before the king. Dead Sea grinned to himself, another victory for the legion! “Checkmate! I am victorious once more!” The Decanus declared, pumping his fist into the air. His opponent, a young recruit, didn't look too thrilled with loosing his fourth match in a row.  


“But I still have my horse!” The recruit protested, pointing to the knight on the chessboard.  


“It's called a knight and it doesn't matter!” Dead Sea barked, smacking the boy's hand lightly. “Now, shall we have another game, Leo?”  
  
  
The boy scowled. He wasn't any good at these games the Decanus wanted to play with him.  
  
  
“Sir, I think … I think you should find somebody more at your skill level.” Leo said, trying to form his sentence so it wouldn't offend the Decanus in anyway. Even if he was in good spirit, it really didn't take much to make Dead Sea's temper do a full 180.  


The Decanus only made a small, humming noise in his throat. “Perhaps... But you're all too young to appreciate any kind of strategy game.” He spoke with a sigh.  


Sometimes Dead Sea felt like he babysitting, rather than leading an actual war camp. Since the death of his first set of recruits at the hands of the NCR, Aurelius had put whatever he could manage into Dead Sea's camp to help reclaim it for good. Unfortunately, all he had to spare were young, inexperienced recruits. This young man being one of them.  


“It was Caesar himself who taught me how to play this game. When I was very young, me and him would sit and play it in his tent.”  


“Really now...” Leo's voice void of any kind of enthusiasm, indicating he wasn't at all interested in an 'Back in my days' lecture. He just wanted to get out of here and be with his friends outside.

  
“Yes. A very intelligent man, our lord is! Not that I actually need to tell you th-”

  
The recently repaired barracks door swung open and Attila came rushing inside.

  
“Sir!”

  
Dead Sea stood to attention. Leo, quickly took this opportunity to slip away and make a break for the outside. 

  
“What is it, Attila?” Dead Sea asked, quickly walking over and patting the gasping scout on the back. Attila could hardly speak through his gasps for air. “You … You really need to take it easy going to and from places, Attila.” Dead stated, easing the younger man into his own chair to help him catch his breath.

  
Between gasps, Attila managed to explain the events leading up his shocking discovery.

  
“We thought it was one of our assassins, sir!” Attila explained. “But when I approached Caius, who found the body, ...Sir.... I think Cottonwood Cove is in deep trouble.”

  
Dead Sea stared at the scout, not even blinking, just breathing steadily.

  
“What …Do you mean by 'trouble' ?”

  
“Sir … We found Centurion Aurelius laying in the middle of the ro-”

  
Dead didn't wait for him to finish. He shoved the scout aside violently and pushed out of the barracks, tearing down the road signalling any recruit he passed to follow. Attila dusted himself while rolling his eyes. Push push, shove shove. No one ever took his news well.

  
“Don't shoot the messenger, as they say...” He groaned to himself, before taking off after his Decanus.

 

* * *

 

As the body lay in the middle of the asphalt, a concerned gathering of crimson surrounded it. Dead Sea's arrival immediately parted the small group, allowing a small opening for the Decanus to hurriedly run into and collapse to his knees, right beside the fallen centurion's side.

  
“What happened?!” The Decanus snarled, turning to face the sea of nervous faces.

  
Caius stepped forward, pulling off the red cap he wore. Revealing a head of messy, short mousy brown hair.

  
“I found- found 'im like this sir! Dun' think ee's too hurt though. Just... Lookin' a lil' dea-”  
  
  
“He is not dead!” Dead exclaimed, taking the recruit by surprise.

  
Caius blinked, then blinked again, and again. It seemed to become uncontrollable, as more physical ticks began to occur. The recruit quickly dispersed himself back into the crowd, as the ticking began to intensify. Attila caught up at this point, merging between the worried set of boys, taking his place besides Caius.

  
“Help me.” Dead Sea said, keeping his tone stale as he bit back any emotion. “Leo, you take the other arm. All of you, provide cover.” Not waiting for a response any more, Dead Sea wrapped the Centurion's muscular arm around his own shoulders. Leo copied Dead's motion, taking the other arm and hoisting Aurelius to the best of his ability. The group began to walk on in silence, eyes scouting the area for the slightest sign of movement. Attila gripped the spear in his palms tightly, waiting for a night stalker to jump from the bushes and ambush them all.

  
“This was eventful, wunnit?” Caius mumbled, briskening his pace to catch up with his friend. “We find a dead body, only for it ta be Aurelius! What an absolute mad man just layin' in the road like that!”

  
Attila groaned. 

  
“Caius... I don't think he was lying there for fun. I think something very terrible has happened!”  


“Well yeah, mate! But still! Mad head innit.”  
  
  
“I- What?” Attila decided it was best to just no longer engage at this point. He'd had enough of Caius and his 'mad man' nonsense.  


* * *

 

When back behind the safety of Nelson's fences, Dead Sea pushed open the door to one of the abandoned houses, grunting under the building pressure on his back. Stumbling into the bedroom, Dead finally heaved Aurelius onto the queen sized bed. The bed itself had no covers and was still stained with blood from Veteran Dirus' assault on the NCR inside those months ago. But, he heavily doubted Aurelius would care at this point.

  
There was a knock on the door and Attila slipped into the room.

  
“You requested my presence sir?” He stated, his hands meeting behind his back as he stood to attention.

  
Dead Sea grunted, still looking at Aurelius rather than his scout. “I want you to go investigate the cove. See what happened then report back to me, need be it, go to the fort and inform our lord himself.” He turned to Attila now, taking him by the shoulders and then leading him out of the room and the house. “Gather whatever supplies you need in the meantime. Take a college to accompany you, if you must.”

  
Being forced to hold back irritated huff, Attila nodded and saw himself out. Dead Sea turned back to Aurelius, his hand threading roughly through his own blond hair.  
  
  
"What a mess."

  
While outside, Attila and kicked an empty barrel. Kicking a plant pot, then throwing a handful of rocks at the fence, Attila finally sat down on the ground seething quietly to himself.

  
He _hated_ this place.

  
The ruckus attracted the attention of Caius, who quickly scurried over to the sulking scout.

  
“Now then, Tilly! What's up?”

  
“Caius. ...Urgh. I have to go investigate Cottonwood's fall, see if I can find any clues as to why Aurelius was forced to retreat. I'm moving out once I've gathered some supplies. ...I can bring a recruit with me if I please.”

  
Caius gasped, his mouth forming the perfect 'o'.

  
“Ah mate! You gotta let me come! It'll be great, me 'n you! Can't think of nought better!”

  
Attila could think of various things that were heaps better than this situation. But from what he could gather, Caius hadn't been anywhere else other than Nelson, since being shipped from the Fort. Perhaps a bit of travelling would be nice for them both.

  
“Sure.” Attila said with a small smile, getting back to his feet. “Go to the recruits barracks and clear out your footlocker, mine too. Hurry up about it though.”

  
“You got it! Caius barked, giving a salute as his common goofy grin graced his freckled face. He then took off running. Attila followed him seconds later, knowing he should probably supervise over Caius' packing.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me @ Decani on tumblr to tell me how much you hate/like this, or just to scream at me in general.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nothing really happens.

Tinnitus rung through his ears, as the large man slowly rouse from unconsciousness. The room was hazy, various pieces of furniture within it seemed to dance from place to place, adding to the building nausea Aurelius was already suffering from. Buzzing and creasing, the building pressure within the man's brain was getting unbearable. From the pit of his stomach came the awful feeling of needing to be sick. Throwing himself out of bed, Aurelius made a mad dash for the nearest bathroom, slamming the steel door behind him shut.

  
The front door to the home creaked open and Dead Sea wandered on inside. He'd left Aurelius to his much needed rest hours prior, not wishing to leave his camp unattended.

  
“Aurelius?” He called, pacing around the living room. He'd been expecting the beast of a man to be up and about by now. After all … He had encountered much more severe situations in the past, only to be back in the saddle an hour later. “Where are you hiding?” He asked sternly, a look of grimace on his face as he searched the home, assuming this was some kind of game the other was playing.

  
A unsavoury sound emerged from the bathroom.

  
Dead Sea's face dropped into a confused frown. A smarter man would've left the house then and there, a man who didn't want to loose his lunch. But- Dead Sea pressed his gloved palm against the door and slowly edged it open.

  
“Oh Mars above.” He muttered at the sight that met him. Although nothing was visible to the Decanus, it was obvious that the only working toilet in Nelson was now christened with _vomit_.

  
“S- Sorry...” Aurelius managed to stammer, pulling the chain and flushing the mess away. “Motion sickness...I think...” He added in a breathless wheeze. Aurelius sighed and leaned back against the grubby bathroom wall. The man would hardly keep his eyes open now, as he body trembled from the sudden loss of body heat.

  
The smaller blond man took a place beside him, offering a comforting arm around his broad shoulders.

  
“No need for apologies...” He spoke gently, his fingers gently working themselves through Aurelius' short, cropped hair. “Would you like to tell me what exactly happened.”  
  
  
“I was sick...”  
  
  
“No, no, Aurelius. I mean” He pinched the bridge of his nose, his frustration brewing. “… At the Cove. ...What happened at the Cove?” Dead Sea then leaned upwards and cupped the other's cheeks, bringing their face close to his own.

  
“Dead Sea...” Aurelius sighed in response.

  
“Tell me what happened, I will not ask again.”

  
Taking another long inhale inwards, Aurelius began to explain the events leading up to his awakening. From the noises, to how Decanus Severus suddenly falling ill. Then finally, to discovering all his men lying dead around him. Dead Sea listened patiently, though his eyes were wide. It was the hatred that burned in those eyes spoke that spoke a thousand words.

  
The Decanus rose without a sound.

  
“This... This act of destruction against us will not go unpunished.” Dead Sea quietly uttered, no longer looking at Aurelius. His gaze focused solely on the threadbare carpet of the next room, the rage within him was building. “Can you stand?” He offered the centurion a hand, which was taken by the other. It took some heaving and struggling on Dead Sea's part, but Aurelius was soon back on his feet.

  
“Dead... What-.... What time is it?” Aurelius grunted, as he was guided back to the large bed.

  
“Roughly three in the morning. Goodnight, Aurelius.” Dead Sea replied, already heading to the exit of the house. His bedside manner was seemingly lacking, but with good reason. His brain buzzed with thoughts of his Legion's enemies, as they were now a bigger threat than ever.

 

But for now, Dead Sea would have to bide his time, until Attila came back with some more answers.

* * *

  
The bitter cold night of the Mojave eventually passed. As it rose slowly from the hills, the sun blessed the once freezing desert with various shades of orange and red. The temperature slowly intensified, bringing to life all inhabitants of the desert.

  
Both packed up and ready to go to the Cove, Attila and Caius ventured through the Legion camp to inform Dead Sea of their departure. Approaching their Decanus' barracks, Attila turned to Caius.

  
“Wait out here. I'll speak to Dead Sea.” Attila instructed, hopping up the wooden steps. The scout thought it would be best for him alone to speak with Dead. Caius found it very, very hard to keep his mouth shut when under intense stress. The commanding barracks was the perfect breeding ground for both stress and anxiety.

  
Caius pouted, his eyes widening similar to how a puppy would beg for food.

  
“I won't be long.” Attila reassured him, before heading on inside and closing the door behind him.

  
Taking a seat on the nearest bench, Caius interlocked his fingers and waited. He waited and waited, tapping the sole of his boot against the dry, cracked ground. This felt like an eternity to the boy, as his concept of time was poor.

  
“Waitin', waitin'...” The young recruit mumbled, his whole leg shaking as he locked his eyes on the barracks door.

  
Five minutes passed.

  
Caius got up from the bench and had an exchange with Leo.

  
Ten minutes seemed to have passed now.

  
He fed the Legion mongrels some food from his pack, before returning to his spot on the bench. Attila still wasn't finished from the look of it, which frustrated Caius now.

  
“How long does it take to fuckin' tell a guy yer' goin-”

  
“Caius!”

  
The young recruit jumped in fright, tumbling off of the bench and landing painfully on his backside. Attila marched over to him, not looking particularly happy. The darker skinned man folded his arms and sternly looked down at Caius, who was grinning sheepishly. 

  
“I said to wait here. I've been looking for you for ages!”

  
“I was- … Wait, _'ages'_? Mate, you were in there like an eternity as it is!”

  
Attila rolled his eyes and shook his head. Quite an exaggeration. 

  
“I was there five minutes at the _most_. Then I come out here to find you've disappeared off the face of the Mojave.”

  
The younger boy looked down, like a child who had scolded heavily. Attila huffed and rolled his shoulders in response. No harm done though, he supposed. Caius was here now and they could finally get on with this horrible errand. “Come on then. Did you pack plenty of water?” The scout asked, raising a brow as he eventually pulled Caius to his feet.

  
“Ye mate.” He chirped in response, patting his string satchel in tandem. “Water, food. The works innit.”

  
Happy that they were both well prepared for the journey, Attila lead Caius to the gates of Nelson. They were guarded by a much larger, monster of a recruit. He glowered down at the two boys for a moment, before he finally shunted the gates open, allowing them entrance to the world beyond Nelson.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Best way to relieve stress? Screw your boyfriend.
> 
> Best way to talk to a person with toroutettes syndrome? ...Not like that.

With the dispersal of his two recruits, Dead Sea could only sit at his desk and wait. It would be more than a day until their eventual return, but the Decanus found himself restless. Anxiety made his stomach churn, leaving him unable to even eat, sleep. Unable to do anything to keep his troubled mind occupied.

  
Raking his fingers through his blond hair, Dead Sea starred down hard at the plastic surface beneath him, starring until his tired, aching eyes began to stream. The lack of sleep caused by what had happened only a day earlier, had eventually pushed Dead Sea from exhaustion to the stage of over tiredness. He would yawn, his eyelids would grow heavy, but sleep would never come to him.

  
The door creaked open and Dead Sea heard someone attempt to slip inside discreetly. They managed to knock over a stack of crates and trip over a steel chair. Sighing gravelly, Dead Sea manoeuvred his chair 180 degrees and faced his 'intruder'.

  
He raised his eyebrows, as the large Centurion stumbled and tripped, as he eventually made his way over to where the blonde was seated.

  
“Good to see you back on your feet, Aurelius.” Dead Sea, kicking back in his chair. “Well enough to start wrecking the place, it seems.” He gestured with his hand to the small mess the other had caused just seconds earlier.

  
Aurelius glanced over to where Dead Sea pointed, then looked back to him with a frown.

  
“Why do you even keep _seven_ empty crates stacked up like that?” He half asked, half grunted, adding much more emphasis on the word 'seven'. Aurelius was determined to prove he was the innocent party here, those dreaded boxes should not be stacked so dangerously close to the door.

  
“You never know when you need certain items, I've come to believe. Never waste a good box, my dear Aurelius...” Dead Sea spoke through a long, drawn out stretch. “Now...” He spoke, finishing up his stretch and limbering up to stand. “I know you're not here to discuss the properties of boxes, Aurelius...” He went on to say, slowly sliding himself over to the Centurion, and resting an open palm against the other's breastplate.

  
Aurelius responded by rest his large hand gently against the other's the cheek. Dead Sea looked so tired. The dark bags under his eyes, which were accompanied by red, vein like streaks that scattered crazily in the corners of his partner's blue eyes.

  
"You look tired, Dead Sea.” Aurelius stated, expressing his concern by gently thumbing the corner of the man's left eye. “Have you not been sleeping again?” He asked softly, as he coaxed the smaller man over to the nearest bunk bed.

  
Dead Sea mumbled something about worrying over recent matters, clearly not wanting to dwell on the subject. Dead Sea knew what the other was driving at by now and didn't want to waste time talking, when they could be _fucking_. He swiftly darted for the nearest lantern on the bedside, dimming it to a low flame and almost casting the room to near darkness.

  
“Bolt the door...” Dead Sea whispered against the shell of the larger man's ear, his breath hot and heavy.

  
As Aurelius did as instructed, Dead Sea frantically worked off his armour. Unfastening various clips and loosening the many ties that held it together. As he worked off the top heavy part of the uniform, Aurelius came shambling back over. The way he walked struck Dead Sea as odd, but he didn't think much of it, perhaps the other was just weary from his ordeal.

  
“Need some help there?” Aurelius asked, but he didn't wait for a response. His hands gripped the front of Dead's leather belt and slowly worked on loosening it. Once the man's tunic was much looser, his hand slipped slowly downwards, groping at softer skin. Dead Sea made a keening noise from the back of his throat, biting back a soft moan as the other grabbed and groped him.

  
It wasn't long before Dead found himself pushed onto the firm mattress and his shirt pushed up, exposing the man's bare, stomach. He wasn't quick enough to stop the other landing a few kisses down his happy trail, causing him to emit a short squeal. The same squeals quickly turned into low moans, as the other's lips began to descended downwards.

 

* * *

  
The two legionaries had walked for hours now. Powering through the sand, heat and various whines and moans from the younger of the two men.

  
It was becoming obvious to Attila just why Caius' old Decanus got so sick of him towards the end. Not that it justified what that brute wanted done to the poor boy.

  
Cracking the two pieces of flint together, the sparks flew and landed straight onto the pile of tinder. The fire instantly roared to life, bringing both warmth and light to the two Legionaries. They had been on their feet for hours, not stopping until they were into a fully neutral zone. Attila sighed and pulled off his boots and armour and tossed them aside, finally relaxing after a long day's walking. Caius followed his lead, removing his own armour piece by piece.

  
“Normally I'd prefer to travel through the night, to save my skin melting off.” Attila explained, shunting the pile of football gear so it formed a attempted neat pile. “Tonight we'll rest instead, while we're out of Nightstalker territory.”

  
“Am fuckin' hungry me mate.” Caius mumbled, digging deep into his satchel and pulling out a tin with a very faded label. “Famished innit.”

  
“Hey, Caius?”

  
Caius looked up from the fire, his features illuminating with the help of the many bright shades the fire . Currently heating up the tin of pork and beans, but Caius was not quite grasping that the beans had to be _removed_ from actual tin first. Attila himself had no appetite, leaving his own food items within his own bag.

  
“Ye?”

  
“Can I ask you some- ...You need to take the beans out of the tin, Caius. They'll heat faster.” Attila explained, pointing to one of the steel plates that was protruding from the bag “Use that.”

  
“Ah thanks!” He grinned, taking the plate from the bag and going to grab the gradually heating tin can.

  
“No wait!” Attila suddenly exclaimed, gripping the other's wrist tightly before he nearly burned himself. “Use something other than your hands! You'll hurt yourself! Good grief, Caius.” He spoke in an almost patronizing manner.

  
Caius laughed nervously before doing as instructed, safely removing the tin from the fire, by 'cleverly' utilizing pieces of removed armour. and allowing it to cool in the sand. He satisfied his current hunger by picking from Attila's untouched plate, much to the scout's annoyance.

  
“Anyway... I wanted to ask you... What did you say to make your Decanus so mad? You know, your former one.”

  
Caius had some strange ticks. His verbal ones could be quite rude, but the young boy was quick with his apologies. Dead Sea brought Caius home one day completely out of the blue, claiming he had saved him from a painful execution. It could only be assumed that their beloved Decanus was mirroring Caesar's behaviour towards him.

_  
'I saved you. Now obey me until death.'_

  
“Mac 'n' Cheese.” Caius nonchalantly stated, taking another spoonful of food into his mouth.

  
Blinking, Attila could only stare. Was... That a tick or was that what the kid had actually said?

  
“Macaroni and.... Cheese.” Attila repeated, cocking a brow at the other.

  
“That's what ah' said. I said 'Mac 'n' cheese and the guy just flipped innit? It's weird though... Like I've called that guy a dickhead and a fucker. Hell, half of those times I weren't even tickin'. Who knew the final straw would be cheesy pasta.”

  
The recruit went back to eating, completely unphased by how absurd his story was.

  
Attila only continued to stare for a good solid minute, then suddenly spluttered with laughter. His cheeks flushed pink as he wheezed between bursts. “Cheese?! A Decanus, leader of ten and well respected men of the legion- And just ...Cheese!” Laughter turned to loud cackling now, as the scout fell about no longer able to compose himself.

  
“Well I'm glad you find it funny.” Caius sneered, a frown forming on his features. “I didn't like, nearly get killed or nothin'.” He grunted, putting another spoonful of food into his mouth before tossing the plate aside. “Ha ha. Dead funny, Caius says weird things! Sure he's beaten black 'n' blue for it! But we get four minutes of laughter so ah well!”

  
The other's laughter slowly died, when Caius' attitude turned. He had never seen the younger recruit 's mood take such a turn, and he felt awful for being the one to cause it.

  
“Hey- look...I didn't mean to upset you, Caius.” Attila explained softly, crawling closer and putting an arm on his fellow recruit.

  
Caius looked away, snorting heavily and flaring his nostrils. No, they never mean too, but they could at least be more considerate.

  
“M' sure you didn't. Ya don't get it. It's not funny, what I got. I nearly got fuckin' killed for it, Tilly.”

  
The grip on Caius shoulder tightened. Attila looked him directly in the eyes as he spoke.

  
“I'm sorry. I didn't realize how...ignorant that was. Really, I'm sorry, Caius.”

  
“...It's fine. I ate all yer food, so let's say we're even.” Caius scrapped his spoon against the now empty plate for empathize his point.

  
“You little-!”

  
Caius grinned wickedly, as Attila slugged him hard in the left shoulder blade.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not really wild about this chapter. it was going to be a full on sex scene but i chickened out lmao.
> 
> find me @ decani on tumblr to yell at me.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Mojave isn't as cool as Caius first thought...

Both recruits rose early the next morning, eager to be able to utilize as much daylight as possible. The fire they had created was quickly destroyed, by dumping copious amounts of sand onto it. Attila didn't want anyone else to benefit from the fire pits he had created, Caius didn't question Attila's decision, not that he would have had to make up a too complex explanation anyway. The brunette recruit never questioned anyone's decisions no matter how questionable they were, he simply nodded and went along like a mindless sheep.

  
That was what the legion seemed to specialize in the most. Turning small children into mindless drones who would charge to their deaths on Caesar's command. It sickened the scout, truly it did, but dare he protest? The Legion would make sure that he would regret ever being born.

  
Attila watched in silence Caius packed up the remainder of their supplies. The plates, and various bits of flint used to start fires were all stored into the bag and then Caius slung it over his back. Jogging up to the sitting scout with a smile, he stared expectantly at Attila. Waiting for his next instruction.

  
“Shall we leave then?” Attila asked, staring blankly at the excited recruit.

  
“Ye!” The other chirped back. “Ready me, mate!”

  
Nodding and rising, Attila lead the way southwards, towards the Cove.

  
He wasn't sure what he was going to expect when they got there. Aurelius hadn't been conscious, when he was instructed to go. Attila was going in completely blindfolded, for all he knew, it was one of those dreaded rangers who took the whole camp down. The same ranger could still be waiting there, knowing some foolish little legionnaire was going to wander right into his kill shot.

  
“Mate look! Look at that thing!” Caius suddenly gasped, breaking Attila's focus. The younger of two pointed excitedly, jumping giddily on the spot. Attila turned in the direction of Caius' finger. He wasn't sure what he should've expected, when it turned out Caius' excitement was directed at a mantis that was wondering close by. Attila emitted a long, drawn out sigh.

  
“Never seen ought' like that before!” He gasped in awe. Caius stepped closer, hoping to approach the strange bug. Attila struck his forearm out and blocked his path instantly.

  
“No. Don't try to pet it, touch it, or actually go near it.” Attila stated sternly, gently ushering the recruit back to his side. “It may look small, Caius, but it's still deadly.”

  
Caius frowned, his eyebrows knitting together. Such a tiny little bug could harm him?

  
“Mate... I can just step on it, innit?”

  
“No. It has razor sharp ...” Attila paused, unsure how to describe the mantis' pincers. “Razor sharp claws!” He improvised. “They could sever your calf and render you unable to walk. And if you think I'm carrying you, you have another thing coming, now lets GO! I'm sick of wasting time!”

  
Caius started dragging his feet after that, while scowling like a child who had been punished. Attila had no time for his attitude, opting to just ignore him unless he tried to do another stupid thing. Knowing Caius though, that wouldn't be too long a wait.

 

* * *

 

His binoculars bounced against his chest as Attila trudged down the long, gaping road towards his most hated place, Cottonwood Cove. Caius followed quickly behind, his previous bouncy energetic attitude had faded. Maybe it was the eeriness of the Cove that was off-putting to the recruit, not that Attila's nerves fared any better. There was no noise, not even the yammer of distant a coyote.

  
That scared Attila the most, a silent killer was lurking.

  
Horror struck Attila as he reached the flat, cobbled path to the Cove. The air surrounding the camp was thick with green fallout, Attila instantly recognised it as radiation.

  
“Caius!” He shouted, spinning back to face the other, who had finally made it. “Caius, back up! The place is radiated we can't stay this close!” He gripped the other's shirt and began to roughly pull him backwards. Caius whined he was hurting him, but the scout didn't let go until he was positive they were out of the danger zone. “Radiation can kill you.” He explained. “...And I think that's what killed the Legionaries here.”

  
Mystery solved!

  
Attila turned and began trudging back up the cliff. Realizing Caius hadn't quite followed him, he stopped and glanced back. Caius was starring towards the green fog, completely focussed. Attila had never the kid look so invested in something.

  
“Caius.” He called, expecting to break the other's trance. The recruit didn't budge, however. Sighing dramatically, Attila jogged back over and shook the kid's shoulder quite vigorously. “Caius!” He yelled, much louder this time.

  
“Radiation from where though...” The recruit questioned, finally looking at the scout, his face filled with concern. “It don't just appear, right? It's gotta be comin' from somewhere, mate.” He went on to explain. “Dead Sea wanted us fort' find out what did this. And that's what we're gonna do.”

  
The recruit was gone in a flash, quickly clambering up the nearest hill and edging himself along the thin indents in the cliff side.

  
“Caius- No. Do not go down there!” Attila barked, following Caius from below. “Hey! Get down here! You're going to get hurt and I swear to god-”

  
“Mate! Av' seen somethin'- No- A someone!”

  
Attila paused in shock. Somebody was alive down there? He ran to the cliff, propelling himself upwards past Caius and onto the next platform. He reached a hand downwards to pull the other recruit up to him. Caius grasped it tightly and heaved himself on up until he was safely by Attila's side.

  
“Where was this person? Was it a ranger? A Legionary?” Attila's questions came thick and fast, causing the recruit a lot of unnecessary confusion.

 

“Mate. Slow it down. He's was legion innit, over there by the houses!” He pointed towards what appeared to be the men's toilet block.

  
Attila remembered visiting that area from when Dead Sea was recovering here. The women's toilets were only a feet from the men's and were identical both inside and out, aside from the typical pre war rendition of a 'woman' on the front. When he had gone over to the women's block, a prime legionary had suddenly pulled him away with force, barking at him for being stupid enough to enter a 'woman's' domain. When Attila had argued that a toilet was a damned toilet, he had to dodge a punch and quickly flee to avoid a beating for 'insolence'.

  
Retrieving his binoculars from his chest, Attila surveyed the area where Caius had pointed. He couldn't see anything... Maybe the kid was seeing things, that the rads were starting to affect him after all.

  
“Nothing's there Caius.” Attila sighed, putting the tool back around his neck. “Come on, we should go-” That was when Attila spotted movement from the area he had just been surveying. A seemingly dead body slowly rose, shambling around as they tried to gain their footing. Attila couldn't identify the legionary, as they kept their head low and the stumbled and tripped their way about the Cove. “Hold up... Caius you were right.”

  
  
“Fuckin' told ya.” Caius spat back bitterly.

  
“Shush.” Attila spun his head around to hush him, then turned back to the injured Legionnaire. “Something isn't right here.. The radiation looks too strong for any human to withstand.”

  
  
“Then we gotta help him!” Caius cried, elbowing past the scout and recklessly sliding his way down the cliff, only just landing on a small ledge. The idiot had landed himself right into the edge of the radiated area! Attila couldn't reach him and screaming at him to come back clearly wasn't working.

  
“Ere'! You alright, mate!?” Caius shouted down to the dazed Legionary. They froze at the sound of a human voice and slowly looked up at the lone boy on the cliff. Attila pulled his binoculars out one more time, confused why they weren't responding to Caius. When he zoomed in on the radiated legionary, he dropped them in horror.

  
It was no Legionary, it was a ghoul!

  
“You idiot! Stop shouting!” Attila cried, ironically his own voice shrill and loud. “That's a goddamn ghoul!”

  
Caius looked up at the scout, cocking a confused brow. What was a 'ghoul'? Seemed a pretty hurtful term to throw at somebody, in Caius' opinion. He turned back to the ghoul.

  
“You need some help mate? That's it come here!” He coaxed, making gestures with his fingers for the 'man' to follow. The ghoul suddenly charged, screeching loudly and flailing its rotted arms, as it ran right for the cliff Caius was holed up on. “Holy fucking shit! Attila! Attila, it's a fuckin' zombie!” He screamed, turning back and desperately trying to claw his way up the ledge. “Attila help me!!” Caius' ability to speak began to deteriorate, as ticks took over rending him completely non-verbal.

  
Attila tried to remain calm, but Caius screaming and cries for help were horribly off putting. He threw himself onto his stomach and reached down as far as he could, hoping the brown haired recruit could grab on. Caius jumped and jumped, each time failing to get a grip onto Attila's spotted hand.

  
Panic and fear was taking over Caius' now, Attila could see the tears forming in the boy's eyes. He was petrified of what he thought was a 'zombie' from the old pre-war horror stories. He continued to scream and scream for help, as the ghoul was trying to claw its way up the cliff. The trapped boy was too terrified to move now, whimpering and snivelling, accepting his impending death. It was just a ghoul to Attila, lone ghouls could be picked off easily!

  
Caius was now a trembling wreck, pressing his body against the stone, as if he could merge himself right into the cliffs and away from the horror below him. Drastic action had to be taken. Attila pulled his spear from the sling on his back, he drew it back and held his arm in front of himself for aim... Then threw it.

  
The spear cut through the air like a blade through tender flesh, tearing through the sky and landing true, right into the shoulder of the ghoul. Attila had hoped for a hit in the chest, for an instant kill, but downing it temporarily was good enough. The ghoul flew back from the force of the spear, crashing to the ground, groaning in pain.

  
Attila leapt down in the precious seconds he had before the ghoul would get back up and go in for round two. He grabbed hold of the trembling boy and pulled himself and Caius down from the cliff, sending the both of them tumbling down and into the radiated cove. If Caius wouldn't climb, they would have to take the hard way out. Caius landed first, flat on his face. Attila followed, accidentally flattening the poor recruit more.

  
“Eurgh...Mattte...” Came a groggy groan from the recruit below, his buried into the small patch of scrub. “Fuckin' hell...”

  
There was no time for this. Attila grabbed Caius' neck warmer and dragged him onto his feet.

  
“Come on! Before your friend gets back up!” Attila hissed, continuing to tug and pull Caius along, like he was a disobedient dog. As he was dragged away from the radiated Cove, Caius took one final glance towards the ghoulish Legionary. It was still screaming, but it was no longer aggressive cries, but now sorrowful ones, as if it was pleading for someone to help.

  
“Wait- Fuck! my damn binoculars!” Attila suddenly cursed, slapped his forehead in frustration as they reached the cobbled path once more. “I left them up there! I can't just leave them... Caius, wait right here! Here. Not there, not over there.” He pointed to a cross close by. “Not anywhere else but here!” He empathized his instruction by actually kneeling down and patting the ground beneath them both. “Here.”

  
“I aint a fuckin' moron!” Caius erupted, getting right in Attila's face. The scout instantly backed off, again not expecting such an explosive response from the smaller Legionnaire. “I'm not-...a moron...” He repeated, his anger fading as he now sobbed.

  
Once again, Attila found himself swarmed with guilt. He hated upsetting Caius of all people, he wasn't being an irritant on purpose.

  
“...Alright. Alright.” Attila sighed softly, holding his hands in front of the recruit in an attempt to calm him. “I'm sorry. I'm stressed, you're stressed... We need to take it easy, okay?... I'm going to go get my goggles- You'll stay here and keep watch, okay?” He ended his sentence with a smile, trying to reassure the other. It worked and Caius nodded slowly, wiping his streaming eyes. “Wait here.” He repeated once more, before running and scaling the hill again and disappearing out of sight.

  
With his binoculars retrieved, the scout made quick work of skipping back down to Caius. He had done as instructed, staying where Attila had pinpointed, much to the scout's relief.

  
“Alright...We should find some shelter and rest. Radiation has entered our bodies, we need to rest-”

  
“Barrels.”

  
“Caius, we're fine, come on.” Attila flopped his head to the side, assuming it was a tick the other was having.

  
“Mate! The barrels!” Caius barked, tugging at Attila's sleeve and pointing excitedly. Clearly he wasn't ticking, but seemed to have spotted something while they had tumbled perhaps? Alright, Attila thought, he'd bite.

  
“What barrels? What are you talking about?” Attila quizzed the other, gently prising Caius' fingers from his sleeve. He didn't need this kid ripping up his uniform.

  
“I saw 'em!” Caius said, stepping back a few steps. “When you squished me, I looked up and saw all these barrels! Green and drippin' with all this goo. I reckon they were what did it!”

  
Attila blinked. By god, the kid had sussed it out. Pretty clever of him, Attila would've felt pretty proud, if he felt any pity for what had happened to the Legion here and actually cared about petty revenge against someone who clearly hated these people.

  
“You're probably right!” Attila forced a smile. “But, we really should find somewhere to rest. I'll send word to Dead Sea about our findings.” Attila then took to the road, Caius scampering after him like a puppy.

  
“Ay.” Caius chirped up. “How're you gonna send word if you're asleep mate?”

  
Attila smiled genuinely now.

  
“I'll show you. Come on, we need to go to a special place first.”

  
The two boys set off together, For once, Attila was eager to go on an errand for the Legion.

 

* * *

 

  
“It's not long now.” Attila informed Caius, as they gradually approached a large clearing.

  
“Ya said that an hour ago.” The younger man complained. He was hot, sweaty and getting more agitated as the heat of the Mojave intensified every passing hour.

  
Attila simply rolled his eyes and shook his head. Clearly the world was a lot bigger than Caius had originally anticipated. Imagine his shock if Attila had told him that there are other states beyond Nevada!

  
“Well, we're close. Come on, race you!” Attila grinned, suddenly bolting up the hill leaving Caius in the dust. Hopefully, by turning it into some kind of game, the other would be more willing to get there quicker. Instead of dragging his feet and whining every ten seconds.

  
Attila was fast, it was why he was given the role of explorer/scout. Lean frame, but excelled at out pacing and manoeuvring his foes. Caius couldn't keep up at all, by the time he finally reached Attila, the scout was already sat on a rusted bench.

  
“Three hours, ten seconds. A record, Caius.” Attila stated blankly, but seeing Caius' expression made him chuckle to assure the other he was playing around. “We're here. I want to show you something. Something really important to me.”

  
Stepping forward, Attila entered the centre of the clearing. The sky looked clear, that was a good sign. He cupped a both hands to his mouth and made a whistling noise, similar to what a avian would make. Caius looked on, though very confused, he wanted to see how this played out.

  
Scanning the skies, Attila mumbled quietly. “Come on...Where are you...” As the sun hit the scout's eyes, forcing him to shield them, a black figure appeared, circling the two men below. “There we go!” Attila exclaimed loudly. He quickly fumbled off his hood that kept his face shielded from the burning sun, getting to wrapping it tightly around his right forearm like a glove.

  
Caius slowly moved in closer, curiosity at its peek. He had spotted the figure it the sky, only taking note of Attila's excitement. Then, out of nowhere a large creature descended from the sky and flapped its large winged appendages before landing itself comfortably onto the makeshift glove. The freckled recruit stumbled back at the sight of the majestic bird, both in awe and a slight twinge of fear.

  
It was a large, speckled Falcon. Its feathered were dotted with white and greys, its colour scheme was similar to Attila's own skin. Maybe that's why Attila liked it so much, Caius figured.

  
“She's beautiful, isn't she?” Attila beamed proudly, gently chuckling the bird under its beak. “Her name's Mirage! I've had her since I was 15” He spoke, still grooming the Falcon “My dad-...” Attila paused, mentally cursing himself for ever referring to that pig as his father. “...Someone shot her mother.” He correct himself. “So I went and fetched the nest down, only one egg inside it. I raised it, keep it warm and this beauty came out! You know how disgusting it is to feed a baby bird, by the way? Revolting... You have to like...pretend to puke it back up for them.”

  
Caius cringed slightly. Birds were gross.

  
“I didn't do that!” Attila growled, knowing exactly what the other was thinking. “Eventually...I got this beautiful feathered girl! ...Wanna pet her?” He then asked, making the young recruit gasp in awe.

  
“Ye! Can I hold her too?!”

  
The kid clearly liked the bird. But with talons as sharp as hers and no additional gloves, he had to decline the request.

  
“Maybe when we get back to Nelson, I've got proper gear for her there. Now... Let's find that shelter , you can help me write to Dead Sea, seeing as you discovered the cause of the Cove's fall.”

  
With the messenger bird in hand, Attila and Caius walked on. It had been a long day for the pair of them, a long rest was all they sought for now.

 


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Knowledge is power. Especially if you can literally throw it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a lot of book abuse in this chapter...

Beams of light gently filtered through the boarded up windows of the barracks. Groaning quietly, Dead Sea slowly rose from his grubby mattress. He smiled when the sleeping mass beside him emitted a sleepy yawn. Aurelius was still sound asleep, his face buried deep into the soft pillows. The quilts barely covered his impressive body,just stretching over the man's hips leaving the trail of hair leading to his navel visible.

The tease.

Dead Sea sat on the edge of the bed and stretched, a long yawn escaping him. He'd slept well that night, the passion between he and Aurelius seemed to have helped temporarily relieve him of his insomnia. He took another long breath, taking in the thick musty air of the room.

The ventilation of his home was poor, mould and damp riddled the wooden structures that held the place together. It was an honest miracle that Dead Sea hadn’t developed respiratory issues, because of what invisible spores were floating through the air were breathed.

Reluctantly standing and scratching his stomach, Dead Sea stumbled into the bathroom to quickly relieve himself. He had no intentions of actually starting his day yet, but the gradually building pressure in his bladder was becoming too uncomfortable.

Dead Sea soon found himself back by Aurelius’ bedside in no time, perching himself tentatively on the edge of the mattress. His fingers gently traced down the larger man’s spine, earning a small quiver from the other. Dead’s eyes followed his own fingers as they worked their way down to the small of Aurelius’ back.

As he fingers trailed, they brushed over something that felt irregular. Dead Sea stopped and lifted his hand, noticing some medium sized red splotches were peppered across the lowest part of Aurelius back. He hadn’t noticed these the night before... Had they just appeared, or was he simply too ‘occupied’ to notice at the time?

Concern washed over Dead Sea’s face, when he began spotting more and more of these red blemishes. They littered his legs and both sides of his flanks. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out. The reasoning side of his brain quickly kicking into gear.

“It might just be nothing.” He told himself mentally. Dead Sea decided he’d figure out for himself what these mystery sores were, quickly dressing himself and exiting the barracks. He knew one of the younger recruits had some medical books hidden somewhere, some ‘gentle persuasion’ could coax Leo into forking them over.

* * *

The young recruit lounged lazily on his bunk, a magazine filled with pre war adverts covered his face. He’d finished the magazine a while ago, and was now just idly picking at the scar on his forehead. Bellus and Marcus were outside on patrol, he assumed his Decanus would be up and about too. Leo had heard no word from the Centurion they’d brought back.

Leo didn’t know much about Aurelius, other than he was a very authoritative figure within the legion. Aurelius was the one who arranged his, Bellus and Marcus' transfer to Nelson.

All of them were arguably the ‘worst’ of their age group. Leo had heard talk of simply culling them all at the time. Remembering the fear he'd felt all throughout that night, unable to find rest due to the sickening anxiety that welled up in his guts. The next day, Leo expected it would be his last. He thought back to how he cautiously ventured out of his tent, only to spot the monster of a centurion and nearly faint in fear.

But death was not on the Centurion's mind. Instead, he ordered for any recruits who could be spared to put in his charge immediately, as a Legion camp across the river was in dire need of numbers. The next thing Leo knew, he and the other two boys were being shipped to Cottonwood Cove, then finding themselves in a whole new camp hours later.

Fast forward a month, here they all were.

The shack creaked open, catching Leo's attention for a split second. Footsteps thudded along the wooden floor, working their way over to the first bed in the room.  Leo went back to his lounging, assuming it was one of the other recruits coming inside to retrieve something. When the boots made their made to the foot of Leo's bed, the recruit scowled under the pages of the book that hid his face.

Was a moments peace simply too much to ask around here? If he wasn't being forced to move cinder blocks from point A to point B, he had to endure hours of Caius' incoherent babbling at all hours of the night.

“Be quiet.” He groaned from under the thin papers, not making any effort to look at the person stomping about the room. Leo assumed it was Marcus, he was often throwing his weight around, as if he had some kind of authority among the small group of boys.

Without warning, the magazine that lay flat on the boy's face was grabbed and scrunched up, nearly taking his poor nose off, then flung aside. Leo found himself starring up at his disgruntled Decanus.

“Who are you ordering to be quiet, recruit?” Dead Sea growled lowly, quick to close in the space between himself and the nervous recruit.  “Me? Your Decanus?! Look at you, just laying there while your brothers in arms are out there valiantly defending this camp!”

Leo pouted slightly protest of the Decanus’ claims. Just by taking a quick gander at Dead Sea’s current state, it was obvious the man had only just risen from the bed himself. His shirt was creased and untucked, his belts were looped oddly and the biggest indicator was the man’s bedhead. Dead Sea rarely left his barracks without first putting his full headgear on... Unless he was forced to drag himself from a peaceful rest session.

“Why are you still laying there?!” Dead Sea demanded. “Get up, you lazy cur!” He roared, brandishing a finger towards the exit.

Reluctantly, Leo rose from his bunk while grunting and grumbling. The one day the recruit barracks were empty ... And he’s sent away from them.

“Oh. Leo?” Dead Sea called. The recruit craned his head, giving the Decanus his usual uncaring glower. “This bed is yours, yes?”  The boy nodded warily in response. Where was this heading? “Ah I see. Because if I catch you laying in it again, I swear I will break both your legs!”

He didn’t need telling twice. Leo scarpered out of the barracks, as fast as his legs could carry him.  Dead Sea tutted after him. Once satisfied the recruit wasn’t coming back, Dead used the toe of his boot to flick open the steel locker that lay at the foot of the bunk bed. Inside the trunk lay just what Dead Sea was hunting for.

Various books on medical related topics were stacked neatly on one side. The other side of the locker was filled junk that Dead Sea had no interest in. His palms reached in and retrieved every book in the locker. Leo wouldn’t miss them too much, what use had a lowly recruit for vast medical knowledge? Dead Sea mentally scoffed at the idea of a grunt wanting to become a doctor.

* * *

Perhaps a grotty toilet cubical wasn’t the best place to find solitude, but Dead Sea wanted to ensure nobody would come looking for him while he investigated Aurelius’ mystery condition. Flicking from page to page, Dead Sea didn’t seem to be coming close to a conclusion.

One page suggested it may be chicken pox. The symptoms listed that the sufferer would be itching and feverish, but Aurelius seemed just fine, even blissfully ignorant of the rashes. He flicked another page, frowning as he quickly skirted past pages about female sexual health.

Almost ready to give up, Dead Sea gave a hefty sigh and tossed the hardback aside. It made a heavy clunk as it clattered against the bathroom door and fell onto an open page. The blonde paid no mind at first, silently brooding. It was a large graphic on the open page that suddenly caught his attention. Reaching out and pulling the book towards him, Dead Sea took a good look at the page and studied it carefully.

The book slowly lowered, what was once concern now replaced with niggling irritation. Leo’s book was slammed shut and Dead Sea pushed himself out of the toilets. He had a bone to pick with that Centurion brute.

* * *

Pain.

Pain from something hard and heavy striking him woke the dazed Centurion from his slumber. The ‘weapon’ what was thrown was a ...book? His fingers brought the offending object closer, hoping to get a better look.

WHACK !

A second, heavier object struck Aurelius in the shoulder this time. His reaction was far more aggressive now, quickly snapping his head in the direction the books were being thrown from. To Aurelius’ surprise, Dead Sea stood there. He was firmly gripping two more hardback books, the look on his face giving full indication that he planned on throwing another.

“Why are you throwing shit at me?” The taller man asked, still very groggy from the rude awakening. “You shouldn’t be throwing books. They’re rare.” He continued to lecture, gently placing the two books on the bedside table.

Dead Sea didn’t seem to agree, as a third book was thrown. Aurelius caught it, though tempted to tomahawk it right back, he resisted and chucked it side. Completely contradicting his previous statement.

“You can’t be trusted at all can you?!” Dead Sea yelled, dropping his ‘ammo’ now (Much to Aurelius’ relief.). “I let you stay in the nicest home in this wretched camp and you repay me by-!”

“Wow! Wow!” Aurelius held his hands up, a silent command for the other to slow down. “What are you banging on about?! I’ve been with you the whole night! You’ve just decided to throw books at me like a crazed librarian!”

Having no clue what a librarian was, Dead Sea ignored the comparison. The two stayed starring at one another, as Aurelius attempted to figure out just what was upsetting his Decanus this morning? He didn’t seem upset, just angry.

 “You ate my chocolate and gave yourself hives! You greedy little shit!” Dead Sea screeched. He retrieved the book from the dirty floor and began to desperately search for a specific page. The Centurion blinked, then slowly scowled. What on hell’s earth were ‘Hives’?  Dead Sea answered his unasked question, by pressing the page he’d been looking for right against Aurelius’ face.

“I can see just fine, Dead.” Aurelius growled, snatching the book from the blond and peering at the page. ‘Hives’ appeared to be some form of occurring rash on the skin. A listed cause? Eating chocolate. Aurelius pinched the bridge of his nose, mentally bracing himself for this next conversation. “Dead. I don’t like chocolate, it’s disgusting. Secondly, ...I’ve not got this hives thing.”

“Then what the hell is that going down your back ...?” The Decanus spat back. He was trying to keep his anger alive, but Aurelius could see deep in the man’s eyes, he was worried. Aurelius sighed, knowing full well Dead Sea had good reason too. Even if he didn’t know it yet.  Aurelius had noticed the blemishes earlier the day Dead visited him, when he was neck deep in the toilet. Only when the blond had left did he notice tiny red bumps forming in-between his finger.

He hadn’t given them a second thought, until now.

“Maybe it’s bedsores! Or bed mites!”

Dead Sea’s hands moved to his hips, as he struck a stern pose.

“Are you implying my home is dirty now?!”

“Wouldn’t hurt you to scrub the blood out of the floorboards.”

“They are made of wood, you oaf! You can’t get stains out of wood!” Dead Sea quickly composed himself, trying to let go of his bubbling over anger. “We’re getting off subject. I don’t wish to argue... I’m just worried.”

Aurelius lay back on the mattress. Crises averted it seemed.

“Your bedside manner could use some work, Dead Sea.” The larger man sighed as he closed his eyes. The bed creaked as Dead Sea pressed his weight onto it. He heard the other sigh quietly, knowing he had been a pain to Aurelius since he'd woken up. “It's called an apology.”

“Yes. Uhm- I'm sorry I uh- lashed out like that.” The Decanus nervously muttered, his open palmy rubbing the back of his exposed neck, trying to massage out the tension.

“And for throwing books?”

“And for throwing books... And accusing you of eating my food.”

Aurelius sat up fully, giving the smaller legionary a kiss on the cheek to assure him he'd said exactly what needed to be said. Dead Sea was such a stubborn ass, but Aurelius found it quite sweet at times.

“You're forgiven.” Aurelius stated, letting himself fall back into the mattress where Dead Sea eventually joined him.

“When the recruits return, we should inform Lord Caesar of their findings, Aurelius.” Dead Sea said, while trying to avoid the glaring red rashes that peppered across Aurelius broad shoulders. The more he looked, the evident it became to the Decanus that these were not just an average wastelander's skin condition.

* * *

Attila woke at the sound of Mirage's various coos and squawks, peeling open brown eye slowly as he tried to adjust to the sudden brightness of their cabin. What time was it? The scout had only intended to take a short nap, instead he must've panned out for over six or seven hours.

“Caius...” He wheezed. His throat felt coarse and clogged with his own phlegm. Attila cleared his throat loudly and called for the other recruit more clearly. Hearing the other call back, he smiled with relief. At least Caius hadn't wondered off during the night. Attila stumbled into the room the voice had trailed from and he found Caius sitting at the old desk, a grin spread across his face as Attila approached.

“Good morning!” The younger boy smiled, stopping what activity he was in the process of. Attila nodded in response and slumped himself into the opposite chair. “Ya sleep well, mate?” Caius then asked, raising a brow. Judging by how Attila's mohawk was fluffed up in every possible direction, he must've been tossing around a lot in his sleep.

“Well enough.” Attila replied bluntly. “How long have you been awake?”

“About an hour. You looked zonked, mate. So I took the liberty of doin' the message for ye! Ere, take a look.” Caius scooted over a piece of tatty, tea stained paper. Clearly torn out of a pre-war book. Attila pulled it towards himself using only his index finger, treating it like it was something disgusting he was being forced to touch. When he saw what Caius had done, the scout sighed loudly and rubbed his temples deeply.

“What'dya think? Ya think I got everythin', mate?”

Attila looked back at the paper. Upon it was a child like scrawl that vaguely resembled some kind of black whirlpool around a square building. Attila assumed that was an attempt to depict the radiation engulfing the cove. Instead, it looked like a tornado had attacked a village consisting only of boxes. Sighing again, Attila slowly looked back to the expectant recruit.

“I take it words aren't your strong point, are they?” Attila asked rhetorically. He didn't know why he acted so frustrated. At least ninety percent of recruits were illiterate, the ability to both read and write reserved only for those who proved their worth to the Legion. Attila had been lucky, possessing these abilities before being claimed. “Perhaps...” Attila had to choose his words carefully, so not to upset the boy. “Perhaps I should write the letter? After all, scouts are the couriers for the legion, right?” He forced a smile, which was met by Caius' own.

“Alright, Tilly. Just tear a page out of them books, innit. Fulla' paper they is.” Caius explained. Attila hated to desecrate a book, but he had no other choice it seemed. He cringed as he tore the blank page from a perfectly good book and lay it flat on the desk. The younger recruit stared intently as Attila began putting words onto paper, his eyes wide in awe. “Y'know … I find it proper mad how you lot can do that?”

Attila stopped writing. “What?You mean this?” He repeated, hinting at the pencil in his closed right hand.

“Yeah! Like you guys make those little lines and shapes and it's like... It's dead good you guys understand it!” He chirped. Attila didn't know whether to smile or feel nothing but sorrow for the boy. A concept as simple as writing a few sentences was so alien to Caius, him merely just scribbling down the events of the last twenty four hours. Caius saw it like the scout was performing open heart surgery before him.

“Yes... Writing is really...something.” Attila sighed, continuing on with his report. The two sat in content silence after that. Once Attila was satisfied with what he had wrote, and that it didn't at all hint that the scout was quite pleased to see a slave camp thoroughly curb stomped, he rolled the parchment up and took it to his falcon.

“Alright girl … You need to head to Nelson. Go to the camp.” He instructed it, chucking it gently under the beak before tying the letter to the bird's scaly leg. Attila wasted no time getting Mirage back onto his arm and bringing her outside. “Go!” He exclaimed, swinging his arm and the bird took off, propelling herself forward and off into the clear sky ahead.

Attila could only watch as the only remaining 'family' he had freely soared away.

A freedom he prayed for, but would never have.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> find me @ decani on tungle hellsite to yell at me


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aurelius and Dead Sea recieve word from Attila.

“You’re positive you saw one?” Reyes quizzed the young trooper. The man shook his head like a nodding dog, eager to confirm his sightings. The sergeant leaned back in her chair, pressing a finger into her temple. “They’re up to something. Building... They’re doing something- Oh god ...Why would they need a Centurion in such a crappy little camp?! It makes no sense!”The Sergeant’s frustration only added more concern to the younger trooper. When she spotted the young man’s expression, she had to soften her scowl best she could.

Though it was never easy to put on a brave face when the legion were springing to life so suddenly. Reyes dismissed the young man, instructing him to get some rest. Once alone, she slammed his fists down hard onto the worn desk. Cursing and seething to herself. “What are you up to, Dead Sea? you little legion bastard...”

 

* * *

 

Two days passed by.

Leo sat himself beside one of the houses, using the shade it provided to his advantage. It was a particularly hot day today, not even his Decanus had decided to venture out today. Not that Leo was holding any judgement, he didn't want to be outside either. Though Leo considered himself lucky, Attila and Caius were somewhere in this heat, being forced to trek for hundreds of miles. The recruit help but smile smugly, loving it when Attila was knocked down a peg or two from his moral high ground he always held around the recruits. Perhaps young Caius would be plenty shaded though, underneath the high horse Attila rode upon.

“Three Seven Two.”

Leo looked up. That was his recruit 'number', each recruit was assigned a number once shipped across the river. The young recruit believed it was a way of keeping tabs on the men, reducing them to a number helped them keep a count on the death toll. That was depressing. A bottle of purified water was tossed in his direction, which Leo caught quickly in-between his hands. “And your food ration.” the Veteran stated, dropping a package wrapped in brown, crinkled paper at the boy's feet. His fingers slowly unwrapped the parchment paper, revealing two pieces of soda bread.

“Is- Is this it?” Leo asked, raising a thin, scarred over brow.

His throat was gripped tightly, sudden and fast. The young boy gagged and choked, his own much smaller fingers grabbing at the thick arm holding him. The veteran snarled, his ugly face inches from the terrified Recruits now.

“You will get what you are given, you insolent brat!” He spat, finally throwing Leo down to the floor gasping. “If it were up to me? I'd just give Dead Sea his marching orders already. ...Then he can finally get some really muscle into this camp, not babysit pathetic layabouts.” With a final sneer, the bully of a legionary left Leo, who remaining trembling on the ground.

Boy, was he thankful Attila hadn't seen that.

 

* * *

 

 

The chain link fence rattled, startling Dead Sea as he passed by. Spinning to face the source of the noise, he happened upon a large bird of prey, its feathers peppered with white and grey. It was quite a beautiful bird. Dead Sea recognised it as the same bird he had seen accompanying Attila at times. As he got closer to the avian, his eyes clocked that a piece of parchment paper was tied to its scaly leg. A message? The paper was delicately removed from the bird and brought back to Dead Sea's barracks for analysis.

“Aurelius?” Dead Sea called, as he entered his barracks.

The response to his call was the sound of projectile vomiting, echoing from the bathroom. This seemed to a recurring theme in their relationship.

“Aurelius, you've not been sick in those toilets have you? Because I've told you they don't have working plumbing!” Dead Sea barked, heading over to the bathroom, dreading the sight that would behold him.

“S-sorry, Dead.” Aurelius finally rasped past, stumbling out of the very far cubical.

Dead Sea's stern expression faded at the sight of the Centurion. He looked so, so pale. So weak ...Nothing like his regular self. He sighed, pacing over to the unsteady, swaying man.

“It's not an issue to worry about now … Come. Scout Attila has sent word to me regarding the Cove. Sit down, we can read it together.” He explained, gently guiding Aurelius back to the main barracks. Once the giant of a man had been eased onto one of the metal chairs, Dead Sea pulled a chair up to face him, seated himself in it and pulled the letter from his pocket.

“What's with all the writing on this side?” Aurelius queried, poking the back of the paper that was listed with paragraphs of type.

“Huh?” Dead Sea flipped the paper backwards. “Ah- He must've used a book to write this.”

“Seriously? You shouldn't-”  
  
“Desecrate books. I know.” Dead Sea interrupted, not wanting another lecture on the preciousness of pieces of paper stuck together. “Okay …” His blue eyes began to scan the scout's writing from under the tinted goggles. Aurelius couldn't fully see Dead sea's expression under all those layers of cloth, but something told him Dead Sea didn't like the words he saw before him.

The paper slowly lowered and Dead Sea let out a long shakily breath.

“What is it, love? What does it say?” Aurelius asked, placing his large hand onto Dead Sea's trembling shoulder.

“Sabotage.” Came the shaking voice of Dead Sea. “This was an act of sabotage!” He roared, flinging himself from the chair. “This infidel has encroached the wrath of the legion! I will hunt them down and have their head!-”

“Dead Sea!” Aurelius boomed, standing to snatch the message from Dead's hands. He skimmed the wording, gathering 'Radiation', 'barrels', 'deliberate' from it. “...The truck.” Aurelius spoke through a whisper. “This person- Must've known about the truck...”

“You told me that truck was harmless to you!” Dead Sea suddenly screeched, pummelling his balled fist into Aurelius chest. “You told me! You told me!” He screamed over and over, his hits becoming harder the more his anguish rose. Aurelius starred in pity. Even with his face and eyes covered, the cracking of Dead Sea's voice and shaking hands gave away the other man was in tears.

“I'm sorry...” Was all he could manage. It was all it could say to console the sobbing man, pulling him into a tight hug. As the two men embraced and Aurelius offered words of comfort to the smaller Decanus. Dead Sea struggled to find comfort in Aurelius' words, as his hands roamed his back the scabbing from days prior seemed larger and more prominent.

This wasn't hives.

This was something else.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Attila arrives back to Nelson, only to find himself forcefully sent on another errand.

“We’re almost home Caius.”  Attila spoke with a soft sigh to the younger recruit behind him.

Nelson was not his home. But, he had to give Caius some kind of reassurance. The two boys had been traveling for nearly two days now, with few rest stops in between. Rampant travelling began to wear Caius down. Too tired come out with a single chirp or whine.

Not that Attila complained. The silence came as a blessing to him, after four days of Caius’ never-ending babble. Yap,yap, yap. The boy never seemed to stop talking, strange trait for one born in the legion.  Attila had less than fond memories of back when the legion forced him into one of their training camps. A terrified sixteen year old boy, stood in line with many others of the same age. So many of the boys shared Attila's- No, Essex's fear. All dragged from their homes, loving homes, much like he had been.

All in the name of greed.

He must've stopped, as Caius made a curious noise and stepped closer to the scout.

“Attila?”

The scout blinked, then shook his head trying to shake off his daze.

“Hm? Sorry. Let's- Let's keep going, we can't be far now...”

* * *

One hour later. They had finally arrived.

“You're back.”

The eldest of the recruits looked down upon Attila and Caius, both blinked and shifted their pupils towards each other nervously. He seemed happy to have unnerved the boys though, stepping aside pulling the gate along with him allowing them both back into Camp Nelson.

“Tha' fuck was his problem?” Caius hissed into Attila's ear, as the boys reached the centre of the camp towards Dead Sea's barracks. “Bloody arsehole.”

“Best to just ignore him. With such silly intimidation games.” Attila explained, sighing quietly. “Well, we're back now, you're dismissed Caius. ...Thank you for accompanying me.”

The freckled recruit grinned, giving a small salute before heading off to join his brothers in the recruit barracks. That was one thing dealt with, now Attila had to see to Dead Sea, who had no doubt many questions about his report sent earlier. With another, much more prominent sigh, the scout entered the barracks.  On queue, two of Dead Sea's bodyguards stood to attention. Bodyguards was being kind as a descriptor though, as the men were hardly much older or muscular than himself. A pitiful sight. Two young scrawny boys so eager to throw themselves at whatever threat would walk through that door, all in the name of the legion.

Dead Sea paced over, his boots thudding threateningly on the wood below. His hands met behind his back and his head tilted to the side curiously as he looked the scout up and down. A hum came from the back of the Decanus' throat. Thinking, processing.

“Scout Attila. You have returned.... Rather early.” There was an edge to his voice, Attila didn't like it. The way 'early' was spoken, implied something wasn't right about his return to Nelson. “It's funny...” Dead Sea started, beginning to pace around ever growing nervous Attila. “I do recall... instructing something else of you- If you were to witness destructive acts against the Legion, Scout.” Once doing a full 360 around Attila, Dead Sea stood in his exact spot as before. “Maybe my condition is starting to effect my memory- But I'm sure I said to go to Lord Caesar if this was an aggressive act. ...Didn't I?”

Ah.

Attila swallowed.

“Didn't I?!” The Decanus repeated, louder and far more aggressive now.

“Well, sir. I wanted to ensure Recruit Caius was returned to Nelson safely. Plus, I was under the impression you would want more details that I simply couldn't fit into a letter, sir.”

“Why did you not take him with you to Caesar's camp?! Why didn't you report your findings to him instead?! Answer me!”

“Because you said yourself months back that you needed as many men as you could muster in this camp!” Attila suddenly erupted, taking the Decanus and his bodyguards by surprise. “By bringing Caius back, I'm not depriving you of needed forces! Now... If you would like... Sir...” The sir was spoken with bite. “I will report to Caesar for you right away.”

Eyes narrowed behind dark tinted goggles. Dead's jaw tightened, the scout's insolence had rubbed him the wrong way entirely. Though Attila couldn't see the Decanus' fierce expression, he felt the tension in the room grow. It was best to take his leave immediately, before Dead Sea considered psychical action against him.

“See to it you do.” Dead spoke with gritted teeth, as his leather gloves cracked under the strain of being clenched. “Report everything you know. Then do whatever he instructs of you next. Dismissed.”

Before Attila knew it, he was back on the road. Towards one of the worst places in existence, Fortification Hill. Where Caesar himself resided, lording over all in his army of slaves. The man solely responsible for destroying his family, a man he would be telling had one of his many monstrous slave camps destroyed.

* * *

Fortification Hill had a stench to it that Attila couldn't stand. Death, rot and sweat. So many men bundled together in such a small, compact area. The place had no running water from what Attila could muster, which made him shiver to the bone. This faction was truly the very epitome of disgusting and savage. The men here were hulking giants in comparison to little Attila, who hardly reached five foot six in height. It made the young boy nervous, as the brutes glowered at him as he scuttled by.

“What are you gawking at, boy?!” One veteran snarled, reaching out and gripping the back of the scout’s hood. Attila yelped in surprise as he was forcefully pulled back and now face to face an unpleasant looking man. “Well?!”

The feeling of looming dread grew stronger within the petrified scout. Perhaps dealing with Dead Sea’s rage would’ve been significantly less horrifying than these savages. Dead Sea would yell, these men would maim.

“Remus. Let the scout go, clearly he has business.” Came a saving voice. Otho, the arena guardian, came over. The Veteran instantly released the iron grip on the scout, loosening so it looked like he was hardly touching the boy. Otho wasn't to be fooled, though.  “I said let him go. I will not ask again.” He repeated, his tone harsh and stern now. The veteran did exactly as he was told this time, fully releasing the boy from his grasp. Attila pulled away, scrambling to Otho's side protectively.

'Remus' glowered, his hate filled stare aimed directly at Attila. But a fierce snort from Otho quickly sent the veteran on his way. Stepping away from Otho, Attila let out a sigh of pure relief. If the Arena man had not intervened, he may have been terribly injured just now.

“Be on your way then, scout.” Otho said blunt, raising a brow.

Not needing to be told twice, the boy scarped off, off towards where he was dreading the most, Caesar's tent.

“I must speak to Lord Caesar. I bring urgent news of Cottonwood Cove.” Attila stated, tone void of any emotion to the Praetorian guard who guarded the entrance flap. The guard starred down on him, like Attila was an annoying gnat buzzing around him.

“Lord Caesar does not just 'see' people on a wing and a prayer! Let alone lowly scouts. You must get your acting commander to schedule an appointment to see him.” The guard grunted back, folding his muscular arms and turning away.  Frustration brewed in Attila, why was he even doing this? He didn't care one iota about the destruction of the cove. He especially didn't need to deal with Caesar's reaction to it.

“My commander is Decanus Dead Sea. He told me I must speak to Lord Caesar on his behalf, as he is attending to the wounded.” Time to play his trump card. “I would hate to tell Dead Sea that I was refused entry, when the matter was life and death, on your order, sir.”

He saw the guard flinch, as though he remembered how much power and influence Decanus Dead Sea actually held. He may just seem a simple Prime Decanus, but his ties to Caesar made the blonde powerful. Not one to be crossed.

“My apologies, scout. Please, follow me.”

* * *

Attila followed behind the hulking guard, hiding in his impressive shadow. The tent was filled with men dressed just like him, the same shades and caped armour. A legion mongrel leashed on a chain barked wildly in his direction. Having never seen this scout before, it lunged on its steel chain which was hardly secured around the arm of another guard who fiercely yanked the foaming dog back.

'Horrid beast.' Attila thought to himself as they reached the dead centre of the tyrant's tent. His escort walked forward, bowing before the balding man who sat on his false throne.

“My lord. This scout brings word from Camp Nelson. He insisted on seeing you immediately.”

Caesar's knuckles cracked under the strain of the sudden tightening. Already, the deep pin lines that decorated his forehead became prominent. If Attila read Caesar's expression correctly, he had to get to the point in five words or less. Or- He'd be loosing his head.

“Speak, child.” Caesar commanded.  That was Attila's queue.

He stepped forward, clearing his throat.

“Lord Caesar.” The words felt like he was being forced to swallow dog shit. “I come with grave news of Cottonwood Cove. It has fallen, to an unknown assailant.”

The man in the throne bristled, snapping his head upwards, glaring deathly at young Attila. First warning. Final warning. If he worded anything else in a way that rubbed Caesar the wrong way, he'd find himself set upon by eight of the brutes that swarmed around the tent like teaming locus.

“What. Happened.” Caesar finally growled, his ringed knuckled slowly cracking as he clenched his fist.

The scout took a deep breath. These words may just be his last.

“I investigated the Cove under Dead Sea's order, sir. For we found a lone survivor of the camp. As I got there, I discovered an act of sabotage. Deliberate radiation of the Cove, killing everybody bar Aurelius of Phoenix.”

“Then why have I been sent you to explain this? Rather than the Centurion himself?”

“...He is- ...Not in good health right now sir. I acted on Decanus Dead Sea's orders, my lord. It was he who sent me to you.”

“...What do you mean 'Not in good health', you miserable little being?”

A frown was withheld. For it would kill Attila if displayed.

“Aurelius has been very ill since the attack. Perhaps through radiation poisonin-”

“I'm going to give you a new order, scout. You'll go back to that wretched camp, you'll tell that worthless centurion to come and see me himself to address his own failure! Not send me some- Scrawny, pathetic lout to tell me his tale instead!” Caesar suddenly roared, rising from his seat and gripping the terrified scout by his throat.

As Attila got ready to say his last words, to tell Caesar what he truly thought of him and his disgusting band of evil slavers, he was dropped. The scout dared not rub his throat, he stayed down, starring up to the old tyrant.

“Did your Decanus say when the Centurion will be well again?”

“He did not, my lord. I believe ... It may some time, so he sent me to keep you from waiting.” 

If Attila had played his card’s right, Caesar would accept Aurelius would make a full recovery in Nelson. Then, maybe during this time, Aurelius could find his own way out of this mess. Caesar himself seemed to mulling something over in his head.

“...Go back to Nelson. You will tell the Centurion to come to me immediately. He has twenty four hours. I leave you with those orders, execute them without fail.”

Like a punch in the gut came Caesar’s words. Attila struggled to speak, only managing a nod in his panicked sweat. 

“Yes, my lord. Thank you.”

Attila immediately turned and left, not once looking back. Not even the vicious mongrel could deviate his attention now. He was out of the tent and bounding down the hills of the fort in seconds, not stopping until he was on a raft back to the Mojave.  

Sitting back into his heavily furred throne, Caesar clicked his fingers. On queue, one of his Legion hounds found his place by Caesar’s side. 

“...Follow him. I sense deception.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> god i love spagetthi 
> 
> follo me on tumbler hellwebsite @ dholes


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Attila muses while Aurelius broods.

Day to night. Dusk to dawn. Attila ran.

Lungs burned, as he powered his aching body through the desert. Narrowly going undetected by passing NCR patrols as the night drew in, belly crawling past raiders who huddled around a glowing fire for warmth. The Mojave was bitterly cold at night, chilling the scout to the bone. Attila desperately pulled his hood further over his face, trying to keep the cool winds from hitting his already stinging cheeks. Eventually, the burning fires of Nelson were in view over the horizon, soon he would be back in a warm bed and out of the freezing cold. But first … Delivering the message.

Attila waded through the camp, trying to avoid kicking an empty can or tripping over a stack of bricks and rubble. Even with the fire barrels illuminating the camp to some degree, the place was still a trip hazard. Finally, after nearly walking right into the wall of it, he approached the barracks. His life felt like one long repetitive task. He bashed his knuckles against the wood and waited. As he waited, he could've sworn he heard the Decanus swear loudly and various things clatter to the floor.

More fumbling, soon Dead Sea cracked the door open by a fraction of an inch.

“What is it?!” He barked, his eye the only thing visible to Attila from his side.

“Sir, I'm back from the Fort. Caesar has a message for Centurion Aur-”  
  
“Leave it until tomorrow!” He went to slam the door shut on the scout, but Attila protested, forcing the door back to the inch it was held open at. “Some of us are trying to sleep!” The Decanus then insisted, clearly desperate to rid himself of Attila.

The scout was no fool. Through the cracked open door, he could see the lantern on Dead Sea’s bedside table still lit. More importantly, the lantern lit up that area dimly and Attila could make out the body shape of another person laying on the Decanus’ bed lazily. It was painfully obvious Attila was intruding on Dead Sea private ‘session’. Attila knew Dead Sea was gay. He knew of him and Aurelius of Phoenix’s relationship. The Legion frowned upon the sexuality, according to form, it was to be punished. Though Attila didn’t know what the punishment was exactly, he didn’t need to think too hard with how barbaric the legion could be. In a sense, he was happy Dead Sea still allowed himself some happiness. But he was still Legion, proud of this fact actually.

It negated a lot of sorrow. How could you pity a man so proud to commit such evil?

“...I’m sorry, sir.” Attila slowly spoke, through a clenched jaw. “I’ll report back in the morning instead. I did not mean to disturb your ... ‘Sleep’.” The scout’s brows rose as he said the word, he could’ve sworn he saw Dead Sea flinch ever so slightly. When the Decanus nodded quietly, avoiding eye contact, Attila left him to dwell on his words.

 

* * *

  
  
“Who was that?” came the call from his bed, as Dead hastily bolted the door shut. Aurelius slowly sat him upwards as the other man lumbered his way over and set himself down with a heavy sigh.

“The scout. I was not expecting him until morning.” Dead replied, easing off his boots and carelessly tossing them aside the length of the barracks. “I feel rather foolish, admittedly. I practically ripped the boy's head off a few days ago. Ordering him to go see Caesar, then report back immediately. Yet just now I send him away with a flea in his ear.”

Aurelius shrugged, not seeing the problem as clearly.

“Let him rest. No doubt he's been running all night, dear. Perhaps he'll welcome a good lie down for a few hours.” He advised, trying to bring some reassurance to Dead's dilemma. If it could be called one. Aurelius often sent Severus on his way when he found himself neck high in paperwork. The sudden memory of his Decanus made him flinch suddenly. He'd not really...had time to process the death of Decanus Severus, it was like he had just left the man in charge while he journeyed to Nelson. But- The man was _dead_. He'd never see Severus again. Murdered, by a faceless person he'd never meet. Aurelius felt the shock hit him like a lead train.

“Aurelius?”

The Centurion snapped back, blinking and offering a smile to a rather concerned Dead Sea. “Does something trouble you, my love?”

Aurelius couldn’t help but love it when Dead Sea spoke so ...affectionately. The Decanus often spoke in such a monotone manner, hardened by Caesar raising. To hear Dead finally break out of his mould for a moment, it was sweet. The larger man bowed his head, as Dead’s hand found itself on his thigh. “Please? Will you tell me what troubles you so?” He asked again, possibly the last time he’d ask too. For Dead Sea knew Aurelius hated closeting his feelings, unlike himself who suppressed every demon that plagued his subconscious.

“Dead... I’m just still- ... It was my fault!” He suddenly exploded, even making Dead Sea raise his eyes slightly. “Their blood is on my hands! I should’ve-... I should’ve... Oh Dead Sea” he said, sounding deflated. His head in his large scarred hands, trying to metaphorically bury it.

“Aurelius.”

A pair of hands gently cupped Aurelius' own. Gently coaxing him to re maintain eye contact. Dead Sea's dull blue eyes meeting Aurelius warm brown ones. “The deaths of Severus and the others. You are not at fault. We established this, sabotage. And...” He gently ran his fingers through Aurelius' buzz cutted hair. “I... Will personally, bring the perpetrator to you. You will choose their execution, my love.”

The words, harsh and toxic in nature, didn't offer much comfort. The Decanus was trying, Aurelius could see that plain as day. But-- He knew deep down seeking vengeance would never ease the hurt of losing those he had grown so close to over the years. He had known Decanus Severus for years ...Even longer than he had known his boyfriend. His chest felt heavy with ever building sorrow.

Dead's hand gently rubbed his back, allowing Aurelius to grieve his fallen. The two commanders stayed up that night, remaining in comforting silence together.

 

* * *

 

Camp Nelson carried the same stench of death the fort did. But it was the more overpowering stench of smoke that made living here slightly more tolerable than Caesar's fortress. Plus – The men here had a slightly better grasp of hygiene.

Attila sieved his way through the rubble and trash, eager to get himself down for a few hours before he would be due for patrol. He really missed his bed, even if it was just a grotty, tea stained mattress. Accompanied with a moth eaten blanket. With a stroke of luck, he'd be able to slip into the recruit barracks without waking any of sleeping men. His hand grasped the doorknob, about to gently ease it open and slip inside.

Only instead, the door was opened from the other side. Attila sound himself face to face with Leo. The other recruit blinked, slightly startled to see Attila standing there. Still half asleep.

“Why are-...Oh...Dead Sea sent you off didn't he?” Leo muttered. “Finally back then?” He asked, leaning against the door frame and blocking Attila's entrance.

“Yes.” Attila simply replied, trying to push past. But Leo was having none of it, staying firmly in place. “Leo, come on. I'm exhausted.” Attila sighed, too tired to have this conversation at what- 3 in the morning?

“Fine, go on in.” Leo moved aside, finally allowing Attila inside. “Surprised you're so eager to sleep with us tonight.”

The scout froze, slowly turning.

“What?”

“You heard me. You think I don't notice you making your snide little comments about us? You think you're better than us because you weren't born legion!” Leo hissed, jabbing a finger into Attila's chest. Attila made no argument against Leo's accusations, simply starring him out. “Yet Dead Sea sends YOU on all these errands. You are the favourite.”

“Ooooh.” Attila raised his brows. “No. This is a you problem, Leo. This ….complex you have, about striving to be the best? Not my problem. Now shift it.” With that, Attila pushed right past the baffled and now rather upset recruit. Dropping right onto his grotty mattress to get those hours he promised himself.

Good night world. Tomorrow would be a new day.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello friends! dum vivimus is going on a break for a while because i plan to work out an actual series for it's entire 'story arc' it's set in.

**Author's Note:**

> If you hate happiness this is the fanfic 4 u


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